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Landowners propose living‑shoreline and fiber‑roll stabilization on Follins Pond; commission asks for revised planting and tree‑replacement plan
Summary
Applicants proposed ~180 linear feet of biodegradable fiber rolls and about 8,000 sq ft of native plantings to stabilize coastal bank at 87 Alfred Metcalf Drive; commissioners asked for a revised plan showing 1:1 tree replacement, clarified resource maps and a condition prohibiting kayak storage on the bank.
Katerina Korolov of Strongtree Engineering introduced a living‑shoreline proposal on behalf of adjacent recreational‑right landowners for 87 Alfred Metcalf Drive on Follins Pond, telling the Dennis Conservation Commission that coastal bank destabilization and increased erosion prompted the application and that the team has engaged Wilkinson Ecological Design to install a tapered biodegradable fiber‑roll system and mitigation plantings.
“It's a living shoreline treatment to manage the accelerated erosion on the property,” said Seth Wilkinson of Wilkinson Ecological, who described a design that begins with a four‑roll‑high fiber barrier tapering with the topography and about 8,000 square feet of planting dominated by warm‑season beach grasses, maritime shrubs and understory trees. Wilkinson said the approach is intended to dissipate wave energy and reestablish vegetation rather than rely on vertical bulkhead structures.
Commissioners and nearby property‑holders questioned tree removal counts and timing. Commissioner comments flagged a potential discrepancy between about 16 trees the applicant said would be removed and the planting plan, which the staff observed showed only about five trees. Commissioner 6 pressed for a near‑1:1 replacement ratio for removed trees; Wilkinson acknowledged spacing constraints but said he could find room to add three additional trees and proposed many more grasses and shrubs.
Neighbors and commissioners also raised construction access and post‑construction revegetation. Wilkinson said stumps and debris would be removed and that disturbed soils would be seeded and protected with biodegradable erosion‑control blankets; he and the applicants supported delaying major plantings until fall when conditions are wetter.
Commission staff requested and the commission imposed draft permit conditions: an updated plan showing the exact number and species of trees removed and planted (with efforts to achieve 1:1 replacement or equivalent mitigation), clear depiction of the 50‑foot no‑disturb zone and adjacent resource areas, and a prohibition on kayak storage on the coastal bank (staff noted photographs of prior kayak storage). The commission voted to continue the hearing to July 17 to allow the applicant to submit revised plans and for staff to draft a permit order.
The commission did not take a final vote on the variance request at the meeting; next procedural steps are submission of revised plans and staff review ahead of the July 17 meeting.
